Valve-spring retainer



March 26, 1929. s. IMERMAN VALVE SPRING RETAINER Filed June 24, 192'? hwmw .57 any? Patented Mar. 26, 1929.

TED STATES PATENT FFl CE.

siran'nnv IMERMAN, or nn'rnorr, MICHIGAN, Assmnon, TO on'anon n. BRIDVIIELL, on DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

VALVE-SPRING- RETAINER.

Application filed June 2 1,

The object of the present invention is to provide a valve spring retainer which will permit the valve stem to maintain a fixed and true axis regardless of the plane of the sprin which surroui'lds the valve stem.

A poppet valve in many instances requires a thing's for taking; the pressure at one end of a spring surroundingthe valve stem for. the purpose of nornmlly drawing the valve to closed or open position. This flange is in present practice a part of a removable member which is fixed in a plane perpendicuinc. to the axis o'l the valve stem. It the end of the spring" bearing on the flange is not perpendicular to the valve stem axis, the spring will have a tendency to throw the valv tom out of its true axis. As a result of this tendency, the alve stem will not run straight in its bushing and will. wear the interior of the bushing with the consequent development of a leak tll6l.(}l1i11f()llf.{ll. 7 h

The present invention overcomes this diliiculty by providing a springretainingz 'i'lai'iged member which does not itiecessarily occupy a fixed. plane relative to the axis of the valve stem. The flanged member is a flangcl socket enclosing a ball carried by the valve stem. it the end of the spring not perpendicular to its axis, it will merely shift the socket member on the ball without creating any stress of the valve stem against its bushing.

The invention is fully disclosedv by way of example in the following description and in. the accompanying drawings, in whichliigure lis a loi'igituilinal section of a valve assembly equipped. with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 22 of Figure 1;

Fig. 3 is an elevation of the socket member;

Fig. 4 is a detail elevation of a modified construction; and

Fig. 5 is a section on the line 55 of Figure 4-.

Reference to these views will now be made by use of like characters which are employed to designate corresponding parts throughout. r

In Figure 1 is illustrated a valve seat 1 formed in a casting 2 which is also provided with a passage 8 communicatingwith the valve seat. On the seat is mounted a poppet valve comprising a head 4 and a stem 5 which 1927. Serial No. 201,123.

slidosin a bushing 6 secured to a wall 7 of the passage 3. i

jThe l e end of the valve stem is reduced. near its tip as at in and is surrounded by a bail member of the type shown in Figure 3. This member has a ball shaped portion 9 from which extends a neclc 1U. It has a. cylindrical cavity 11 of substantially the smile diameter as the i'u'ireduced part of the valve stem 5 and. has at its lower end a flannel? extending into the cavity for engagement with the reduced part 8 of tho. valve stem. The member is split length ise and radially as at 13 in several places. The splits 0X- lTGlll'l tar as but not through the free end 14 oil the neck and permit the device to be spread during application to the valve stem so that the flange 12 may pass the valve stem tip 15, which is oi regular diameter and enter the cavity 11 to engage the reduced end 8. V 7

Over the hall member 9 mounted a par-- tially spherical socket member 16 adapted to move universally on the ball member. The socket member has an aperture '17 in dome. In asseml'iling the device, the socket member is preferably applied. to the valve stem before the ball member, the neck ll.) oi: which. is adapted to pass through the aperture 17. The lower edge of thesocket membcr has an outwardly extending flange :3

on which the spring 19 surrounding the valve stem is adapted to hear.

I'll the lower end of the spri is in a plane not perpendicular to the axis of the valve stem 5, the socket member will he tilled corrcspondingly but will not throw or tend to throw the valve stem out (it the axis of the bushing 6. This is in contra-distinction to present constructions wherein the spring-ons nged flange is immovable relative to the valve stem and thereby pormits an inaccuracy in theplane of this end of the spring to stress the/valve stem in the bushinr, as a result of which the bushing becomes worn and leaks are developed. In disn'iantling the.

device of the invention, the soclzot member is pushed towards the wall 7 against the action. of the spring 19, and the ball member is spread and withdrawn. After removal of the ball member, the socket member falls away from the valve stem.

In the embodiment illustrated in Figures 1 4 and 5 the ball member consists of a simple sphere 2O split diametrically at 21 for application to the valve stem at the reduced endthereof; The segments of the sphere are suitably cored as at 22 to fit around the re duc'ed end of thevalve stem, but since they are or a greater diameter than the length of this reduced portion, they are internally per shoulder 24 of the reduced end. ma or portion of the inner walls of the segehainfered as at 23 to accommodate the up- The lnents hus constitute projections 25, correduced part of: the valve stem.

' member is enclosedin a socket member 16 s. ilar to the member 16 already described.

'l hlS' device is dismantled by lifting the socket memheragamst the action of thesurroundm'g' spring 26, whereupon the ball segments may readily be removed from the valve stem.

1 Although a specific embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it will be understood that various alterations 1n the details of construction may be made The ball 1 Without departing from the scope of the invention as indicated by the appended claims.

hat I claim is 1. A valve stem retainer comprising a. ball .member adapted tor attachn'ient to a. valve stem and presenting more than half of a complete spherical surface, a socket member eiielosm'g said ball member and movable relatively thereto, said socket member having;

STANLEY IM ERMAN 

